Cracked japanning - can anything be done?
#11
Banned
Join Date: Oct 2012
Location: San Lorenzo, CA
Posts: 5,361
The primary cause is from the heating and cooling and the associated expansion/contraction as well as the change in moisture.
I have always wondered if an oven bake could "reflow" the surface, but never had a machine that i would be willing to try on...hehe
I have always wondered if an oven bake could "reflow" the surface, but never had a machine that i would be willing to try on...hehe
#12
Super Member
Join Date: Oct 2013
Location: Centralia, WA, USA
Posts: 4,890
That's a shame. I don't think reheating the japan will help.
Tammi you might be able to tint some shellac black and fill the cracks a bit before you clear coat it but it will most likely still show.
Rodney
Tammi you might be able to tint some shellac black and fill the cracks a bit before you clear coat it but it will most likely still show.
Rodney
#13
For me today, it's a major thing to have taken it from the state it was in to clean and working and this weekend, I'm going to work on a base for it and hopefully the needle and throat plates will show up Monday. Then I'm going to give my hands (and fingernails) a rest!
#14
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Join Date: Oct 2012
Location: San Lorenzo, CA
Posts: 5,361
#15
Super Member
Join Date: Sep 2015
Posts: 1,963
Where they baked or heat treated? I didn't think they were. The cast iron bodies where dipped in the black paint, left to dribble off, probably left to dry, then spray painted with shellac. I assume a type of "lemon" shellac, at least a purified version were used. Does anyone know if the decals were coated with shellac when factory new? My 1950 201K has a very clean metal gold look to the decals. Some machine are more dull, even though decals look like they are in good condition. Repairing cracked shellac is usually done with alcohol and repeated layers of of new shellac, usually no heat is invovled. Luck is that clean old shellac takes well to new layers of shellac.
I keep getting hits for nail polish when I search, I never new it was used in nail polishes.
I keep getting hits for nail polish when I search, I never new it was used in nail polishes.
Last edited by Mickey2; 12-04-2015 at 12:26 PM.
#18
Shellac nail treatments seem to be a high end treatment - ie something I've never tried. My finger nail beds usually turn blue with clear nail polish so I don't paint them. I feel like it might be unhealthy for me.
I'm not sure if the Singer machines were baked now that you mention it. I had it in my head that they did but can't recall it from the video that admittedly I haven't watched in a couple of years. I'm reasonably sure decals were covered with shellac - otherwise they'd be rubbed off right away - either in use or when we clean them with Glenn's process. The decals were only slightly compromised once I'd gotten aggressive with the first machine - through the shellac - or most of it.
I think the more dull looking ones are from certain types of care or storage - harming the shellac.
Anastasia! I have a bottle of black nail polish and a bottle of testers paint here for exactly the same reason. I agree, it's good for rust protection if it's not a critical machine as far as appearance.
I'm not sure if the Singer machines were baked now that you mention it. I had it in my head that they did but can't recall it from the video that admittedly I haven't watched in a couple of years. I'm reasonably sure decals were covered with shellac - otherwise they'd be rubbed off right away - either in use or when we clean them with Glenn's process. The decals were only slightly compromised once I'd gotten aggressive with the first machine - through the shellac - or most of it.
I think the more dull looking ones are from certain types of care or storage - harming the shellac.
Anastasia! I have a bottle of black nail polish and a bottle of testers paint here for exactly the same reason. I agree, it's good for rust protection if it's not a critical machine as far as appearance.
#19
Super Member
Join Date: May 2012
Location: Florida
Posts: 1,585
I don't think I'd tempt fate on the RAF. I'm no expert, but I would be afraid the testers paint and/or the black nail polish would really screw it up! Just my opinion, but that's a pretty special machine. The only thing you really could do would be clear coat shellac and I'm not well versed enough to recommend that! Afraid I'm not much help.
Jeanette
Jeanette
#20
Super Member
Join Date: Sep 2015
Posts: 1,963
From furniture restoration I know they are not afraid to add fillers or coloring in damaged parts before adding new layers of shellac; and that's when they don't sand down or strip the wood brefore they polish it up. I'm just keeping up a hope that dings, chips and cracks can be improved upon.
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